Plant closures, job losses, and the ever-looming threat of tariffs that have roiled vehicle manufacturers are likely to get their fair share of the spotlight as 20 Democratic presidential hopefuls debate each other in Detroit, the heart of the U.S. auto industry.
The forums, set for Tuesday and Wednesday, will provide an opportunity for candidates to touch on issues that remain a question mark for automakers, even as President Trump insists car manufacturing is in the midst of a revival.
“This is a good backdrop for anything to do with industrial heartland issues,” said Kristin Dziczek, vice president of industry, labor, and economics at the Center for Automotive Research.
Trump bested Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton in Michigan by just over 10,000 votes four years ago, and the path to victory in 2020 runs through the Rust Belt state and its neighbors. While the president often touts the health of the economy and manufacturing gains in his pitch for a second term, automakers in Michigan have been cutting workers, and some residents there are skeptical of Trump’s success.
“The president’s economic policies are benefiting the wealthy and the well-to-do, and have not trickled down to middle-class voters,” said Joe DiSano, a Democratic political consultant in Michigan. “The bottom line is every Democratic candidate needs to focus on pocketbook issues and healthcare. And in Michigan specifically, the candidate who can articulate best an economic vision that increases Michigan’s share of the manufacturing sector will do very well.”
The day after the second debate, General Motors’ transmission plant in Warren, Michigan, will cease production. The plant, which first opened its doors in 1941 and employs roughly 200 people, is one of five factories in North America that GM, headquartered in Detroit, said would halt operations as part of its efforts to reduce costs. The vehicle manufacturer is also cutting its salaried workforce by 15%.
A second GM plant in Michigan, Detroit-Hamtramck, was scheduled to idle in June, but the company announced in February that production of the Cadillac CT6 and Chevy Impala would continue into January 2020.
Ford, meanwhile, is cutting 7,000 white-collar jobs worldwide by August, including 2,300 in the U.S., as part of an overhaul designed to save the car company $600 million annually.
GM’s decision last year to stop work at the U.S. factories prompted intervention from President Trump, who pressured the company to reopen its plant in Lordstown, Ohio. The plant built its last car in March and its idling left 1,500 employees without jobs. But in May, Trump said GM was in talks with electronic-truck maker Workhorse to buy the plant.
The president has visited Michigan numerous times since winning the White House, DiSano said, and “each trip he talks about how the auto industry is going to come roaring back, and we have not seen any indication of that.”
The industry was further rattled when Trump threatened in late May to slap punitive levies on 5% of all Mexican products unless the country helped curb illegal immigration into the U.S., a signature issue for the president. The duties, set to take effect June 10, would have increased by 5% each month until reaching 25% in October.
Such a move, industry leaders warned at the time, would harm consumers, threaten American jobs, and lead to increased costs, as major auto manufacturers import a large portion of parts and vehicles sold in the U.S. from Mexico.
Trump ultimately backed down after negotiators reached an agreement under which Mexico would buoy security on its side of the border, though the White House warned the tariffs remained an option if the president wasn’t satisfied with results.
Dziczek expects trade, encompassing tariffs and the yet-to-be-passed update of the North American Free Trade Agreement, to be the top issue on auto workers’ minds during the debates, particularly since it’s set just blocks from the Motor City headquarters of the United Auto Workers.
“We’ll see what they would do differently in relationships with our closest neighbors, Canada and Mexico, and what they would do differently with China, which is one huge question mark,” she said.
Gloria Bergquist, spokeswoman for the Auto Alliance, a trade group representing companies behind 70% of all U.S. auto sales, said its “primary focus” is the “overall vitality of the auto sector.”
“No other industry in America has such an expansive reach to every state, delivering economic benefits and creating jobs in so many other sectors,” she said. “We hope that the candidates recognize the impact of the auto industry on the U.S. economy and keep that in mind when developing their policies.”
